After making headlines yesterday over a new rap song he released online Indians right-hander Trevor Bauer met with manager Terry Francona and general manager Chris Antonetti, who presumably just said something like “stop doing stuff like this, please.” Publicly, though, Francona called it “a non-story.”

Bauer later talked to reporters about the situation and made it clear that the song wasn’t about former Diamondbacks batterymate Miguel Montero, who recently criticized him publicly. So who was it about, then? “People on Twitter who say you’re terrible, work on your ERA, stick to this, stick to that.”

Well, that’ll show ’em!

Bauer also admitted: “I’m terrible at rapping.” And then he explained why he does something he’s terrible at:

If someone was to go out and fish and catch a two-inch fish, no one would make fun of them. But because I go out and I’m terrible at rapping, but I enjoy the process about making the beat and writing the lyrics, and I happen to put it online, if someone wanted to listen or happened to like it, I get blown up about it and there’s a whole bunch of controversy over a hobby I do.

Some valid points there, but the “happen to put it online” part is obviously the key to the whole thing. If he went fishing, was “terrible” at it, and posted details and pictures or videos of his fishing trip online he’d probably be mocked for that too. Which is why most people keep their hobbies to themselves. It isn’t the terrible rapping that caused people to mock Bauer, it’s the terrible rapping and then making your terrible rapping available for anyone to hear.

Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports reports Thursday that the Orioles “are said to have begun fielding calls of interest” on superstar Manny Machado and “are close to the point of seriously weighing whether to trade him.”

You’d think it would be a no-brainer for the last-place O’s to flip Machado — an impending free agent — for prospects, but Heyman notes there is “still a question whether or not longtime Orioles owner Peter Angelos” will give the go-ahead. One person familiar with the situation put it a “50-50” likelihood. Another suggested that it would take a massive return, which, sure.

Machado entered play Thursday with a sensational .328/.405/.635 batting line, 15 home runs, and an MLB-leading 43 RBI in 49 games. It’d be a real shock if he’s still wearing an O’s uniform by the end of July.

Heyman reported previously that at least nine teams made aggressive plays for Machado this winter, including the Cubs, Phillies, Dodgers, Indians, Diamondbacks, Yankees, Red Sox, White Sox, and Cardinals. A whole lot of those teams still make sense here in late May — maybe all of them except the White Sox.